How is the market? These days my answer depends on the neighborhood. Location is the key difference in determining how the Portland and Vancouver market is doing. You may be in for a surprise if you’re a seller with expectations of ten offers and thousands above asking. Buyers now have some leverage when negotiating terms and repairs with sellers. All negotiations of the transaction are managed differently than they were six months ago. As far as the data is concerned this report by Elliot Njus and Mark Friesen from Oregonlive.com will show you what the MLS tells us are the hottest neighborhoods to date.

Portland-area home prices continue to grow at a rapid clip — faster than any other major U.S. city except Seattle. But that’s not occurring evenly across the real estate market. Some areas are still seeing prices grow rapidly. Many, but not all, are areas where housing remains affordable relative to the rest of the region. Read more…